Labyrinth II
by Kestrianna
Summary: The first chapter of a story I'm not certain will be finished. I've posted this in other places asking for advice and opinions, and not a person has responded. If it's such a bad idea, I just won't finish it. There's a prelude I've almost finished..
1. Prelude

**This is the Prelude to my Labyrinth fanfic. The prelude takes place directly after the movie. I'm going to post a 2-part prelude, 'cause I haven't finished the whole thing yet. This is part one. Enjoy, and PLEASE review!! ^_^;**

**DISLCAIMER!**

**The first bit, directly before the break, is taken from the Labyrinth Novel; I did not write it, nor do I own any of the characters or concepts. Everything following the break was written by me with the help of my husband, alas, we still don't own anything in it. Le Sigh.**

_Outside the dark window, the white owl had been perched with his claws hooked on a branch, an effigy of watching and waiting. Now he swooped away over the park, on silent velvet wings, up toward the full moon. Nobody saw him, white in the moonlight, black against the stars. _

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Sarah hadn't the faintest idea the owl had been there, of course. She was far too busy celebrating with the various denizens of the labyrinth to even think to glance out the window. And the ensuing game of Scrabble was far too engrossing to let her think back on the evening's events, why, she hadn't even had time to notice who was there. There were so very many friends, all wonderful in their own ways, absolutely crowded into her room. Who could have expected her to notice he was missing?

_'But I did..' _Sarah sighed to herself as she turned in her bed for a countless time. "I said _all _of you....jerk." She mouthed quietly to the shadows, hurt that her invitation had been ignored as it had. There was an odd silence that followed, as if she could hear the fall of a shadow's footsteps, and then; "Yoo _wish_ 'im??" Sarah startled, but kept her voice low as she blinked over the edge of her bed at the three-eyed goblin below. "Ah, no! I didn-"

"I 'an gets 'im if yoo do, or you says it." He smiled. At least, Sarah thought it was a smile. He did sound as though he were trying to be helpful. "Look, I appreciate it, but, I don't wi-" She caught herself, but that was close. Sarah sighed inwardly as she realized she needed to work on her vocabulary just as much as her personality. "Thank you. But don't tell him I said anything, ok?" Grinning toothily he nodded at her, a rapid, jerky movement, then darted back beneath the shadows. Back under her bed. Hesitantly,with the growing sense she really didn't want to know, Sarah peeked underneath her bed. But he was gone, and no horde of goblins awaited her, just a few boxes and a hairclip. She slowly settled back into the bed and returned to her internal reflections, both delighted and concerned that she was still seeing them. It was real, she knew that much. Hoggle had still been proudly displaying the bracelet she'd given him when she'd shooed everyone out, exhausted from her unexpected adventures, and the Wiseman's cup still held her ring. It was perhaps a bit suspicious that the boisterous celebration had at no point aroused the curiousity of her parents, but Sarah found that far easier to believe than nearly anything else that had happened that night. As for the whys and hows of it all, she wasn't about to test her sanity by trying to figure that out. The Underground and all those within existed, she could see them, and that was more than anything she'd ever hoped for. The newly matured Sarah drifted into a very deep and dreamless sleep, both physically and mentally tapped to exhaustion.

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'_Well. _That_ could have gone better._' The thoughts of the Goblin King were sour indeed as he reflected on the evening's events and the stubborn girl who dared to defy him. "Insolent _child_." His hand reflexively clenched shut as he spoke, trapping a trinket he'd been holding within his grip. A mere instant later he purposefully struck out with his crop, sending a small hair-clip wearing goblin into one of the many piles of sleeping creatures in the room. The goblin decided to stay there, and soon fell asleep, the only intelligent thing it had done in quite some time. Standing now, Jareth paced about the room as his agitation grew, focusing on nothing but the image that was forever etched into his mind. "Does she really think me defeated? That I, -_I_,_**Jareth**_, The _Goblin __**King,**_" Here his words were laced with a foul distaste, but as he spoke the last word it rang out with such authority, such power, that its truth could not be doubted. His fist clenched tighter, and he was suddenly reminded of the tiny metal object he held within it. "Honestly." The word came out rather quietly, a long, already tired breath that had been further exhausted from being held so long. He unclenched his hand enough to massage the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "The foolish chit of a girl. Rising herself to such power on what? A whim. An ignorant, childish _whim_." He frowned at the pile of sleeping goblins curled near his throne and swiftly kicked one out of his way. He was trying to pace, here. Really.

"IT WAS THE CHICKENS!" It shrieked as it collected itself from across the room and ran out into the hallway, loudly. There was a good deal of muttering from the others as, half-asleep, they shifted and moved out of the danger zone. Well, the _current_ danger zone. A squeaky protest rose from the pile. Then all was silent again, save for the musings of the King.

"Hmph. No power indeed. Not directly, perhaps.." A cruel smirk crossed his lips as he slid back into his throne, the jewel-tipped riding crop habitually tapping out a rhythm as he finally calmed himself enough to look at the object he'd been crushing in his palm. Such a small thing, yet it seemed to bring him some hidden amusement as he let it play across his hand, flipping end over end from one finger to the next; Sarah's ring, given to the Wiseman in payment, and now in Jareth's possession as ruler of the Labyrinth. The Goblin King could feel her essence within it. It obviously had been worn by her for some time, and bore some amount of importance. '_And _now_,_' He thought, his amusement increasing, '_It is _mine._'_ In mid-flip it ceased its spin and fell quickly back into his waiting palm which snapped shut around it, like some cleverly laid trap that had just been sprung. _'Just as she will be, in the proper time.'_


	2. Chapter 1

**Hokay, here goes. My hubby and I are working on this, and are somewhat unsure of it's quality. There is a prelude I am almost down with, and we are almost finished with the next chapter. If anyone is liking this and would like to read more, please please review and tell us so? Otherwise, I'm going to have to assume no one likes it. =/**

**Oh, yeah- DISCLAIMER!**

**I owns NOTHING! Not a thing, soul, person, goblin, Goblin King, or shadow.**

**The Goblin King could own me if he'd like, but seeing as he's yet to collect on my numerous offers, I don't think he's interested. Drat.**

Labyrinth II (Working title)

Sarah climbed up the stairs to her room. The party was over, and her friends from school had left. They were probably a bit disappointed, all things considered. It had taken every bit of manipulation she could muster to get her stepmother to even allow a party, despite being her eighteenth birthday. Once she'd agreed, however, it was clear it would be under her stepmother's terms: no loud music, no messy snack foods or pizza, everyone carefully reserved and well-behaved.

Sarah had been tempted to throw her own party elsewhere instead, but decided against it in favor of having more money on hand when she left for college in a few months. Besides, she could still have her own party, and it would be more wild than anything she could have arranged. She carefully shut the door to her room, drew the blinds on the window, and then, in a querying voice she called out, "Hoggle? Ludo?"

No response.

"Sir Didymus?" She waited. Then, more timidly, "Ambrosius?"

Still no response. She looked over at her vanity, but even her mirror was empty of their presence. Slightly hurt, she sat down in the chair. They'd never failed to come when she called before. Slowly, her eyes settled downward. There, sitting on the vanity table, placed precisely in its center, was an all-too-familiar crystalline sphere. Sarah tensed.

"No."

"Well, well. Little Sarah's all grown up." There could be no mistaking that voice. Gaze shooting upward again, she saw his mocking grin in the mirror.

Sarah whirled to face him. "I didn't call you!" But no one was there behind her.

"Indeed. I can't tell you how_ terribly _devastated I was, when I failed to receive an invitation to your party." Sarah turned back to face the mirror and the Goblin King within it.

"Where are my friends?"

"On their way home, I presume. The party is ended, after all."

"I mean Hoggle, Sir Didymus, L-"

"Dear girl, you are an adult now, even in these so-called _modern_ times." He rolled his eyes, then started pacing behind her, looking around at her room, just barely within arm's reach if he were actually there. "Are you still clinging to such childhood fantasies? Don't tell me you've only managed to mature..." he paused, turning his predatory gaze towards her once again, "... _physically_." Sarah's cheeks warmed reflexively. Angry that he could produce such a reaction in her, she flushed even more scarlet.

"If the Labyrinth is a childhood fantasy, why are you here?" she retorted.

"Must you always be so intentionally oblivious? I am hardly the fantasy of childhood." Reaching from behind her, a gloved finger traced the line of her jaw. "Wouldn't you agree?"

"Leave me alone!" Again Sarah whirled, trying in vain to slap away the illusory hand. "You have no power over me!"

"Do I not? Pity." He stepped back away from her, idly examining the pommel of his riding crop.

"Why are you here?" Sarah demanded, arms folded in front of her.

"Sarah, I have always come to you bearing gifts. Now, on the day of your coming of age, you ask why I come? Is it not customary to give a present?"

"Your last 'present' to me had a worm in it. Why should I want, much less accept, anything you would offer?"

"No." His mismatched eyes turned cold. "My last gift you refused outright." As suddenly as he tensed, once again he seemed mocking and carefree. "Most ungraciously, I might add. You don't even realize what I was offering, silly girl. I could have shown you so much... but now you'll simply have to learn it all on your own."

"Learn?" Sarah was cautiously curious. She knew she could not trust him fully, but she could not remember him ever actually lying to her.

"Of course. Your pitiful excuse for an education system certainly wasn't going to prepare you for rulership."

"Rulership?" Sarah repeated again, surprised. Jareth stopped his lazy pacing and looked at her, eyes narrowed and piercing.

"You don't know?" His eyes widened again, seemingly surprised as well. Then, he burst out laughing. Sarah felt her cheeks reddening again, this time from embarrassment, as though she ought to know what he was talking about, or at least what was so funny. When he'd had his laugh, he shook his head in mock despair. "Dear girl, did you honestly speak those words without realizing? You believed so strongly in my lack of power over you. Did you think the rest of your pretty little monologue was simply theatrics?"

"What are you talking about?" Sarah tried to recover, putting what authority she could manage into her voice.

"Your _kingdom_, Sarah! The one you so boldly compared to my own. Or have you forgotten our little interlude so easily?" Sarah stared, dumbfounded by his words. His eyes narrowed in scrutiny again, and a note of disappointment entered his voice. "One might think the Fireys had _succeeded_ in removing your head, considering how little you seem to use it."

"My... " Sarah couldn't form the words, disbelief overpowering her ability to speak.

"As an adult, even by your backwards society, you must accept the responsibility of your domain. In consideration for your age, I had _generously_ granted a temporary amnesty to those who turned against me to aid you. Now that you have fully come into your role, however, I feel it only_ fair _that you accept them into your kingdom. They will no longer be welcome in mine."

"But I don-"

"_Yes_, you _do_. And it's high time you took responsibility for it. Even_ I _wonder at the disrepair you've allowed it to fall into. You have thirteen hours, Sarah, to find your throne and claim it, else you forfeit your domain in its entirety. Leaving your friends without a suitable home, I might add."

"Thirteen? I suppose these are the same 'thirteen' you gave me last time?" She glared, still in shock but with anger overriding her other emotions as the memory of spinning clock-hands surfaced.

"No." His voice was somber, his expression holding a tired seriousness that she had never seen on him before. "I cannot manipulate the time you have available, in _either_ direction. That would indicate I had some amount of power over you, would it not?" He paused, letting the irony of his last statement sink in. "But that does not mean I cannot help you."

"_You_, help _me_?"

"Why Sarah, that is all I have ever done, despite your childish protestations. I make to you the same offer I left you with: Just let me rule you, and I will give you whatever you desire. Let me be your King, and I will show you the way to your domain."

"What do you get out of it?"

"Your allegiance only, if that is all you wish. A touch of gratitude would be nice, but perhaps that's stretching things too far."

"No."

"Sarah..."

"Don't 'Sarah' me, _Jareth_. I remember my history, and know perfectly well what rights I'd be giving up as a vassal to a king. You don't want _me_ at all, do you? You want my kingdom. So what is it? What is it I have control over that you want so badly?"

He laughed, and his image began to fade. "If you don't know even that, then I suppose Hogbrain and the rest are going to be in an _awful_ lot of trouble."

"His name is Hoggle!" Sarah shouted back, though she was alone in the room once again. She flopped down onto her bed, reeling, and muttered, "You're the one who's pigheaded."

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